Case Study – ‘Robert’, ‘Carol’, ‘Amy’ and ‘Barney’
NB – names have been changed in this case study
In May 2023, OSF received a referral from the Voluntary Network for a gentleman, ‘Robert’ and his wife ‘Carol’ who had previously owned dogs and still missed their last dog terribly. Now both in their 90s, they did not feel in a position to have another dog themselves due to not being able to meet its need for exercise. As a couple, Robert and Carol often felt overlooked by or were not eligible for other services because they had each other for company. However, without children or other family locally, they did not have any other regular interactions except for phone calls, so were very much missing socialising face to face with other people in addition to missing the companionship of a dog.
One of OSF’s lead assessors had an initial phone conversation with Robert and it was clear that he and Carol were excited about the idea of having a visiting dog and company other than each other. As they had previously volunteered with Pets as Therapy with their last dog, our assessor could see that Robert and Carol understood the power of animal companionship.
Two weeks later, the lead assessor went to visit the couple. Both were in relatively good health for their ages and could move around unassisted, but were struggling to come to terms with old age and accepting the limitations it brings. Robert had been in the Royal Air Force and Carol was a well-respected nurse and both felt that, as they had aged, people had begun to speak to them differently and forgot that they are both well-educated and still very capable. Robert had even recently passed his advanced driving test. Their perception of how others treat them and how groups for elderly people might be like had held Robert and Carol back from socialising at events in the community.
A suitable volunteer, ‘Amy’ and her friendly Labrador ‘Rosie’ were identified, and in just over four weeks from when the referral first came in, Robert and Carol received their first AAA visit from Amy and Rosie. These visits have been hugely beneficial for Robert and Carol, providing the much-missed companionship of an animal and human social interaction. Amy recently took the couple to a local community lunch where they enjoyed talking to others and seeing people that they knew, including someone Carol used to work with in the hospital. Robert spoke to the husband of the event organiser who happened to share his interest in robotics and hopes to stop by to visit them at a later date. It was such an enjoyable experience for Robert and Carol that they are planning on going to similar events in nearby villages as well. This is a key aim of AAA: to encourage clients to engage with their local community and enhance their social network. Through her visits, Amy also identified that Robert and Carol needed some support with cleaning, so OSF researched some reputable cleaning companies and passed the details on to the couple to contact.
Robert said: “We are enjoying the visits, [Rosie] has come out of her shell and is lovely. [Amy] is pushing us to sort things out like getting a cleaner. We loved going to the community lunch and now have heard of others in local villages that we plan on going to as well. We saw lots of people we knew.”
Amy commented: “They are a wonderful couple. Such fun to chat to.”